Burn Survivors Picnic heals psychological wounds

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Thorough pain to triumph, the third annual Burn Survivor Picnic took place Saturday at Stramler Park. A barbecue and games gave participants a chance to socialize and connect with other survivors. Because of the trauma a lot of burn victims go through, they often develop a close relationship with their care team. Although burns are associated with physical pain the psychological pain can be great too.

"There's a lot of mental things that go along with being a burn survivor, so when we bring them here, they can talk with other burn survivors and really associate with them, and hopefully get a lot of internal issues out that they have to deal with everyday," said Brandon Smith, of Kern County Firefighter Burn Survivor Trust.

The event was hosted by the Kern County Fire Department's Burn Survivor Trust and the Grossman Burn Center at San Joaquin Community Hospital.

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Last Fridays storm brought little rain to the valley floor but it came down hard in the foothills of Breckenridge. Lightning and isolated showers kept me pinned inside my vehicle in an attempt to wait it out. After the rain let up I barely made it out after almost getting stuck in the mud.